


RTAH Spy AU 3

by QueenCoeurl



Series: Spy AU [3]
Category: Rooster Teeth/Achievement Hunter/Funhaus RPF
Genre: Alternate Universe - Spies & Secret Agents, Blood Loss, Blood and Gore, Espionage, Gen, Heist, Violence
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-02-10
Updated: 2015-02-10
Packaged: 2018-05-26 19:02:10
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 1
Words: 16,987
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6251797
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/QueenCoeurl/pseuds/QueenCoeurl
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Geoff gathers the crew for an important job. This time the target’s one of Joel’s casinos. But the FBI is on their tail as well.</p>
            </blockquote>





	RTAH Spy AU 3

 She quietly strode up to the front of the darkened room to stand in front of the projector screen. Her audience sat quietly in the dark, their faces illuminated by the monitors of their laptops set before them. It was a small crowd of about half a dozen and they waited intently on the speaker.

 She straightened the collar of her grey pantsuit and clicked the small remote in her hand. The screen behind her was illuminated to show a case number and the date below the word “Briefing” in large text.

 She silently cleared her throat. This was a massive case; one she had worked on for years, and now she finally had a team to help her bring those men to justice.

 “Good Morning, hopefully you are all well caffeinated as this one’s quite the case.” She clicked forward to an overview, “They call themselves the Fake AH Crew. Consisting of twelve people they are what could best be described as a private militia and are incredibly well funded by the so called ‘Reds’ of the ongoing Red and Blue conflict. We’ve been working on disarming these two militant criminal organizations for a long time. I have managed to identify this ‘crew’ as being the main operational branch, actively interacting within the civilian space.

 They are a group of hardened criminals. Killers of cops and civilians alike, they do not let their objective escape them. Highly organized they act as a cohesive tactical unit, capable of operating anywhere in the world.”

 She flipped over a paper and advanced a slide. An image of a younger Geoff appeared on the screen. Clean shaven and dressed in formal military uniform it was a portrait taken while he had been in service.

 “Their ring leader, and possibly the only person capable of controlling this group; Geoff Ramsey. Ex-US Army. Served as Black Ops until he was recruited with the promise of better rewards and the opportunity for less time in the field getting shot at. Left the military and effectively dropped off the radar. Records disappeared and people were silenced. He’s deceptively clever, and enjoys exploiting those that would underestimate him. Highly organized, and well respected by his peers which is a feat, as you will learn, due to those he surrounds himself with.

 Dangerous unarmed and comfortable with a wide variety of firearms. Avoid engaging him if possible. If he must be engaged; he enjoys to converse. Use that to buy yourself time, but know that it is also buying his team time to out maneuver you. It is highly suggested that he be confronted alone and preferably out numbered. Capable of being reasoned with, but it is not recommended, as he has a reputation of being fickle.”

 The next slide appeared showing two candid photos of Jack. The first appeared to have been taken by a traffic cam and had Jack in slightly blurred monochrome behind the wheel of a sedan. The second image had been taken with a zoom lens and depicted him standing in front of a hangar in a small airfield arguing with some man.

 “This is the crew’s second in command and Geoff’s right hand: Jack Pattillo.” She introduced, “Getaway driver, pilot, tinkerer, and all around master of mobility. He runs support and extraction. We don’t know his background or where he learned his skills, but assume there is no vehicle he can’t commandeer. Without his machines he’s assumed to be one of the less dangerous members, but rumours circulate of him having a certain aptitude for interrogation, so do not lower your guard. He can put a bullet in you as easily as any of the others. Avoid a vehicular chase, as he **will** out maneuver you. Caution is advised and you are to assume he is armed with at least small calibre rounds.”

 She clicked to the next slide and took a breath, “James Haywood, AKA Ryan.” The slide showed a mug shot that was probably over a decade out of date, “This image was taken in early two thousand and we had to track down and scan in the hardcopy filed away in a small Georgia PD. He was taken in as a suspected accomplice to assault, but the charges were dropped. Since then we can only assume he’s stayed out of the prison system as any and all digital records that should so much as mention him do not appear to exist. As such we have only hearsay and testimonial as remembered by law enforcement.

 What they have to say is less than endearing. He spent years as a hitman for hire and created strong ties within the criminal and mafia communities. Within those communities they call any length of time in which he has not killed someone a ‘murder break’. Very few are willing to speak of him, and we strongly recommend that you avoid him at all costs. Even if what they say is exaggerated, he appears to be a highly skilled individual that may potentially not be right of mind. To quote an interviewed inmate: ‘He puts the laughter in slaughter’.  This would set him up to be a bit of a wild card for his boss, but it seems that Ramsey has the utmost trust in his loyalties. As stated earlier, do not engage this man.”

 The next slide popped up with another man in military uniform, “Ray Narvaez Jr. AKA X-Ray. Like Geoff he is military trained. Sharp shooter and top ranked sniper until he went MIA during a routine paratrooping exercise in Panama. Assumed dead until an intercepted transmission mentioned him by name and was answered by his voice, as identified by his ex-commanding officer.

 With his skill set there will be little he doesn’t see and he will be well armed with high calibre rounds. He was also quite skilled at hand to hand during his service, and as deadly accurate with short range weaponry as he was with long. Assume that his skills have remained honed, if not improved. Avoid engaging, or ambush and disable quickly. Any alarm raised will cause the rest to scatter, or worse, to come to his aid.”

 The slides moved forward again to display the smiling face of a man lit by the camera flash. He held a beer next to his head and appeared to be in a dimly lit bar or club. It was less than flattering but it was all they had.

 “Gavin Free,” She started, “AKA Vav or Gavino. British national. Safe cracker and code breaker. Less skilled in combat than his peers, but should be seen as unpredictable and willing to endanger himself and his peers. Adept with a handgun with an affinity for explosives and incendiaries, which are fortunately kept out of his hands.  Whether this is due to past incident or their better judgement is irrelevant, but he may offer an opportunity to exploit tensions within their ranks. Engage with caution and look to exploit his unpredictable nature. Closely partners with,” She clicked to show a picture of Michael pulled from the national no fly database. He looked less than impressed and lacking sleep.

 “Michael Jones AKA Mogar. Heavy weapons and explosives expert. Main role appears to be watching Gavin’s back. He has a reputation for his temper and it is said there is no barrier or security measure capable of standing in his way. Strong and skilled in hand to hand combat, he will often favour a knife or other blade and keep his opponent within arm’s reach. Has been known to leave traps behind to destroy evidence once law enforcement arrives on the scene, often with enough of a blast to level the whole building. Weapons of choice at a distance are semi and full auto rifles, so exhausting his ammo is a potential – if ill advised – strategy. Avoid engaging him solo, and instead ensure Gavin is present as it will divide his attention. The more divided his attention the easier he will be to distract and get the drop on. It is worth noting he has a background as an electrician and uses this to his advantage when possible.”

 Next slide. A graduate photo of Lindsay.

“Lindsay Jones, previously Lindsay Tuggey. Her spouse is Michael Jones. Con artist. She occasionally joins the previous six in the field, but mostly runs recon and support. Expect her to be armed and difficult to corner. Do not engage her in conversation and leave all interrogation until she is sitting in a cell.

 Expect her to have knowledge of explosives and heavy weaponry, but assume she is lightly armed. Disabling her will likely disable Michael and vice versa.”

 Another click forward and the slide showed five faces.

 "These five, in order, are: Kdin Jenzen, Kerry Shawcross, Jeremy Dooley, Mathew Bragg, and Caleb Denecour. We have very little information on these men as they rarely venture into the field and run all the supporting activities for the team.

 Chances of encountering them will be slim but know that they will be monitoring all communications and traffic within the area. They will be difficult to locate, and it is recommended that disabling the main crew be your priority, as these five are significantly less dangerous and can be swept up later.

 Your objective is to bring as many of them in for questioning as possible. However, these men will not hesitate to kill you, if you cannot complete the mission you are advised to immediately abort. Disable and arrest, but remain aware of your team’s status.

 This is a rare opportunity to catch the whole crew, and if we abort we do not know when the next opportunity will arise, if it arises. As high value as these targets are, if you are cornered then deadly force is authorized.“

 She finished the presentation and the lights in the room brightened, "Any questions?”

~*~

   It was their oldest safehouse, a dingy second floor apartment. Located in a quieter area of the city with lower property values, rent was paid in cash and no records of its tenants existed. Heavy light blocking curtains were permanently drawn across the windows.

 Inside it was well lit, and furnished mostly with couches and chairs clearly salvaged from the curb. A bashed up dining table stood in the middle of the main living area with large whiteboards mounted on the surrounding walls. The one bedroom contained a bare twin mattress on the floor that had seen better days.  Spending the night here was not something that occurred often, and honestly they tried to avoid it.

 Ray had spread himself out across one couch with a controller and absent mindedly played a shooter on the small TV he had been key in convincing Geoff to buy for the place. Next to him Gavin supplied him with commentary while Michael was absorbed in his phone on an armchair next to them.

 At the table Geoff was unpacking his notes, blueprints, and photographs for the upcoming briefing. Some he attached to the whiteboards and others he simply spread out across the table. Hardcopy was the only way to go in this business, because it was the only media that could be 100% confirmed to be destroyed. It was also unhackable, which was a bonus.

 Ryan had a laptop open on the table and stood over it complaining about the speed of the internet connection they had to use here.

 Geoff turned away from hanging a map on the whiteboard, “Look, shit’s gotta be encrypted. You complain about this every fucking time. If you have another suggestion…”

 Ryan huffed in irritation, “Geoff, I’ve told you a thousand times, you can have the most secure connection possible and still have fiber speeds! You know that’s how I have my setup, and there’s no reason why we can’t have the same. Just pay me the airfare and I’ll get you guys a similar setup. I’ll route through South Korea and Italy; honestly just pick any place on the map with half decent internet speeds.”

 The apartment door opened and Jack walked in, breaking up the argument.

 Ray sat up, “How are you the best driver of all of us and yet you’re the one always late?”

 Jack pouted, “They’re called traffic laws. I keep my civilian record clean. You wouldn’t call me slow on the track.”

 “Ray you’re talking to the man who flies jets upside-down for fun.” Michael stood and made his way over to the table now that they were all here.

 “More like the man who makes us puke for fun.” Gavin grumbled and followed Michael.

 Jack overheard and laughed, while Ray shut down the game and joined the rest of them.

 Geoff waited until they had all found themselves a place around the table and then began, “We received intel that Heyman’s casinos are being used for more than just the usual laundering. He’s using his distribution network to covertly move weapons and equipment.“

"Makes sense.” Jack muttered and crossed his arms.

“Yes, well, as great as it would be to dismantle the network, it’s rock solid. We would be no more than highway bandits pulling their cargo aside, and have nowhere the man power to make a significant dent in their operations.” Geoff rolled open a blueprint, “This is the casino floor of Caboose. Two floors down-” He pulled another blueprint over, “is this place.”

“Looks empty.” Michael observed.

“It’s home to Heyman’s central data center and servers. All his casinos send their data to this location for archiving. Aside from this information being able to ruin him, we believe that all weapon shipment and delivery information will be stored here as well. If we can get ourselves a digital mole into the system we will have full access and control of their weapons network. The timing of shipments, the routes they take, even what will be shipped and how much.”

 Ryan lifted an eyebrow, “They aren’t exactly going to ignore us playing with their numbers. We can watch, but any interference will quickly be noticed.”

“We need eyes on their movements. We won’t directly interfere unless absolutely necessary.” Geoff explained.

“And knowing is half the battle.” Ray said while looking quite bored.

“This one’s going to be a long one too.” Geoff informed and then started briefing them on their roles, “Michael, you’ve drawn the short straw this time.”

“What the fuck is it this time?” Michael sighed and crossed his arms.

“I’ve got you hired on as maintenance. Had you clear their background check and made sure to include your electrical background. Your name is Larry Patelli.” Geoff threw an envelope containing the documentation at Michael who caught it.

 Michael scoffed, “Larry?”

 Geoff nodded, “Yeah well, you start on Monday and-” He said the next part quickly, “after your three month probationary period, we’ll be good to go.”

“Three months?!” Michael slammed his hands on the table, “I’m working maintenance for three months as a guy named Larry?!”

 Gavin snickered and received a glare from Michael.

“You’ll be our guy on the inside. You’ll also be sabotaging their infrastructure. Get to know their security systems and electrical intimately. The servers will be on a separate grid to the casino. Get into it, and rig it. You have three months, so take it slow and careful. We can’t have this fall apart this early in the game.”

 Michael nodded but was still less than pleased.

 Geoff grabbed another envelope and tossed it to Jack, “Jack we’ll need vehicles according to those exact specifications, down to the trim on the interior. You have three months; get whoever you need on it.”

He turned to Ray, “You’re in charge of outfitting our rides. If everything goes according to plan we won’t need it, but it’s where we will most likely encounter the greatest trouble. The chances of you two having a clean getaway are slim.

 You will be our primary distraction. The two of you will disable the armoured van scheduled for the daily deposit and take its place. Your take will be anywhere from five hundred grand up to five mil. The amount doesn’t matter; we’re not doing this for the cash. We want security to focus on the fact they’ve been robbed, and ignore us in their system.” Geoff grabbed another envelope and slid it across the table to Gavin, “You are our inside distraction. There’s a passport in there, under your new identity of Simon Rooney. You’re euro-trash. Rich parents and you’ve come here on a two night bender to blow it all. You’re going to be the resident high roller and a drunken mess.

 Ryan you’re playing the role of his bodyguard. Demand the most of casino security and keep them watching him. This will also allow you to keep a concealed weapon, and we have all the necessary paperwork.

 That’s only during the night of. Until then I want you, Ryan, working with B-team to put together our digital mole and figure out the best delivery method. Geoff turned to Michael, "Speaking of B-team, I’m bringing them in on this as well.”

 Michael laughed, “You know Lindsay’s got a lifetime ban from every major casino on the strip, right?”

“Yes, and that’s why we need her. She will be our third distraction. She’ll be in a shitty disguise taking marks. Security will catch her scent quickly and she can lead them on quite the chase. We want security’s attention divided as much as possible.” Geoff gave them the brief overview of her role.

 There was a pause in discussion as they all looked into their paperwork and saw in greater detail just what they were dealing with.

“So I’m to get proper plastered?” Gavin asked.

 Geoff nodded, “Yeah.” He noticed Ryan’s frown, “Your role is bodyguard not babysitter. Gavin, keep your wits about you.”

 Ryan sighed and crossed his arms, “I’m not going to stop him if he decides to marry the first hooker he meets.”

“I’m sure she’s a nice lady.” Ray commented.

“I’m not going to get that drunk! We’re going to be in one of Joel’s casinos, and I’m not an idiot.” Gavin defended himself.

“That’s debatable, but booze doesn’t help.” Michael was bitter about his role and how Gavin was basically getting a Vegas weekend for free.

“My role will be a decoy for Jack and Ray. I can’t get within a mile of Joel’s property without being recognised, so I’m depending on you guys to run this smoothly.

 Any Questions?” Geoff concluded.

~*~

“You ever thought about going straight and actually doing private security?” Gavin asked Ryan who was walking to the side and slightly behind him.

 They were both in suits, and while Ryan’s was conservative, Gavin’s was more casual and flamboyant.

 Ryan looked at Gavin from behind his dark shades, “No.”

“Never?”

“Nah. It’s not me. I’m not a meat shield.”

 Gavin was silent for a few seconds as they passed through onto the casino floor, “How many bodyguards do you think you’ve killed?”

“Enough to know what they did wrong.”

 Gavin perked up, “Oh and what was that?”

 Ryan looked at him over his shades, “Being bodyguards.”

 Gavin scanned the casino floor and changed the subject, “Craps? Blackjack? What should we go for?”

 "I honestly don’t care. Just pick a table.“

"You’re allowed to smile, ya know. Enjoy yourself even.”

 Ryan grunted in response.

~*~

 Jack put on the uniform cap and climbed in behind the wheel of the armoured van. Ray jumped up into the passenger seat next to him wearing an identical uniform. Their little makeshift garage housed a second identical armoured van next to theirs where Geoff stood leaning against its side.

“You gotta go right on my signal Geoff. If we screw up anywhere it will be here.” Jack spoke to him from his seat.

“Don’t worry Jack, if I fuck up it will be me in prison.” Geoff comforted him.

 "I have an idea: how about none of us end up in prison?“ Ray’s head popped out from behind Jack’s shoulder.

 Jack chuckled and Geoff smiled.

 Jack checked his watch, "Ok we need to get going if we want to intercept the pick up.”

 Ray nodded and double checked that his weapons were still where he had stowed them.

 With a wave to Geoff, Jack turned on the engine and pulled out onto the street.

~*~

 Michael sighed and signed in for his shift. Geoff was going to owe him big time for working this shitty ass job for over three months now.

 He’d dealt with everything from idiots who’d locked themselves out of their rooms to outright electrical disasters caused by spilt drinks.

 Mostly he was changing light bulbs. So many fucking light bulbs.

 He hadn’t lost track of his real job, and had taken his time in rigging explosive charges all over the place. He’d finished within the first month, but after a squabble with his manager he had gone back and laid more. Then a coworker stole his lunch that one time, so he planted even more. Eventually he got to hiding larger and larger explosives simply because he could and was otherwise bored.

 Of course Geoff had only wanted him to destroy a small part of their electrical, but by this point Michael was sure he could level the whole place if he really wanted.

“Hey Larry.” A custodian greeted as he passed.

“Hey.” Michael returned the greeting with a nod. He hoped his excitement wouldn’t show, but tonight was the night all of his work had been leading up to.

~*~

 Lindsay straightened her shimmering dress and took a deep breath. She was wearing a wig but was otherwise unchanged.

Mentally she rehearsed her escape plan for the thousandth time.

“Hello Vegas, long time no see.” She said aloud and smiled.

 With another breath to calm her nerves, she began walking forward out of the small chapel parking lot and towards the strip. If she was recognized before even entering Casino Caboose, she’d have no choice but to abort. As always, safety of her own hide was the priority.

 She turned onto the main strip and blinked at all the flashing lights. Her mood lifted at the sight of countless tourists deep in the drink with even deeper pockets. She wasn’t going to let the temptation sidetrack her. She had to pick a mark within the casino in order to be a distraction.

 So far so good, and she could see the large neon signs of her destination glowing warmly. Ban or not, she made a mental note to try and get Michael and herself back here on their own time. It would be nice to line her pockets with hard earned cash once more.

 She entered without incident. The dimly lit casino floor was punctuated by the bright multicolored lights of its games. Scanning the area she spotted Kdin positioned at the nearest bar, and set that as her destination.

Surveying the group of people at the bar, she settled on an unmarried man that was most likely in his mid-thirties. She sat down next to him ensuring he was between her and Kdin.

“Metropolitan.” She ordered when the bartender came by.

 Lindsay turned to the man, “Gotta love Vegas! I think I’m leaving here an alcoholic.” She smiled.

 The man chuckled, “Tell me about it. My liver’s gonna be waving a white flag by the time this is over.”

“I’m Lauren.” Lindsay introduced herself and offered her hand.

 The man accepted, “Rick.”

“What brings you to Vegas, alone?”

 The man chuckled again, “Do I look that desperate?”

 Lindsay shook her head and gave a dismissive wave, “No, no, no! I was just asking. I mean there really are only two types of people who drink alone.”

“Oh?”

“The alcoholics and the lonely.”

“Does that mean you’re lonely?” Rick asked.

 Kdin took it as his cue to enter the conversation, “Man, you don’t want some Vegas chick!” He gave his words a slight slur.

“Excuse me?” Lindsay looked offended.

 Kdin pointed to Lindsay beer in hand, “She’ll tell you she loves you and then rob you blind as she takes the kids, and the house, and the fucking dog!”

 Rick put his hands up in a calming gesture, “Yo buddy, thanks for the tip, but this isn’t your battle. Stay out of it.”

“They’re all bitches.” Kdin spat the words into his drink.

 Lindsay abruptly stood, “Excuse me?!”

 Kdin stood up as well, “You heard me.”

 Rick got up between the two of them, “Whoa, whoa whoa!”

 Lindsay pushed up against Rick who was now acting as a wall, “You wanna be sexist? Say it to my face! You don’t know me!”

 Rick turned to face Lindsay, “Hey Lauren, ignore the guy. He’s clearly drunk.”

“Doesn’t make what I’m sayin’ any less true!” Kdin had advanced right up to Rick.

 Rick jumped when he noticed Kdin’s proximity.

“Fuck you.” Lindsay said and grabbed her purse. She turned and stormed away.

 Kdin gave a huff, downed his beer and with a pat on Rick’s shoulder he turned and left as well.

 Rick was left at the bar looking after the two of them as they disappeared.

 Kdin’s phone vibrated. A text from Lindsay:

  _$55 in cash, 3 credit, 2 debit, ID, picture of pet dog_

Kdin pulled out Rick’s phone and looked it over. It had no lock, so he swiped through. He texted back:

  _IPhone 5, no lock, angry birds, and fart SFX app. Also more dog pics._

Lindsay was quick to reply:

  _Bleh. Loser._

_What next?_

 Kdin updated her:

  _Matt’s on penny slots, Jeremy blackjack table 5. Gav’s roulette table 3, so stay clear._

 There was a pause as Lindsay thought it over:

  _Tell Jerem I’ll be joining him_

 Kdin dialed Jeremy’s phone.

 Jeremy pulled out his phone and let his cards fall back flat.

 He saw Kdin’s number and answered, “Hey Babe.”

“Tuggey’s headed your way.” Kdin informed him.

“Yeah I hear ya.”

“Table hot?”

“Babe, no, I told you.”

“A'ight, anyone worthwhile?” Kdin prodded.

“Yeah, my mom is serious about taking you shopping. She’s eighty, just tolerate her and you’ll probably get a nice necklace or bracelet out of it.”

“Okay just point her in the right direction.”

“Love you.” Jeremy concluded the conversation.

“Love you too.” Kdin said with a grin before hanging up.

 Jeremy stifled a laugh and couldn’t help but smile.

 Not even ten minutes passed before Jeremy saw Lindsay approach his table.

“Hey-o, is this table lookin’ hot?” Lindsay spoke to the group seated around it.

“It is now.” Jeremy laughed. He caught Lindsay’s gaze and tossed it towards and elderly woman seated at the table. The woman wore heavy gold jewelry. If it was real it would be a nice prize, but unfortunately it did not mean her wallet was equally valuable.

 Luckily it didn’t matter; working for Geoff kept them well taken care of, and tonight it was only the crime that counted.

“Deal me in!” Lindsay said as she plopped down into the seat next to the older woman.

~*~

 Gavin slid the pile of chips over to black, and rubbed his hands eagerly, “Fifty-fifty, right?” He turned to the group of watchers he had garnered, “Don’t jinx this one for me!”

 Ryan silently walked up behind him, “Simon,”

 Gavin nearly jumped out of his socks, “Jeezus Christ, Ryan! You bloody creepy bastard-”

 Ryan ignored him, “You’re up fifty grand and barely standing. It’s time to consider cashing in.”

 Gavin scoffed at him and pushed him away, addressing the crowd around him, “Proper party pooper over here wants me to call it a night! Night’s still young! Another round!”

 There was a cheer from the crowd as Gavin paid for all their drinks once more.

 Ryan said nothing and stepped back once more. He left the crowd so he could watch each of them better. Standing next to their appointed security officer, he clasped his hands in front of him and stifled a yawn.

“They never listen, do they?” The security officer attempted conversation.

“Spoiled brats usually don’t.” Ryan replied; he was going to take the opportunity to paint Gavin as he pleased.

 The security officer chuckled, “But they pay well don’t they?”

“If they didn’t, I wouldn’t be here.” Ryan then changed the topic, “Have your eyes on the crowd? No one worth watching in particular?”

“Eye in the sky says no. We’ve got mostly tourists and a couple of harmless regulars. No one is showing up in any criminal database.”

“Doesn’t mean there’s no one willing to try something crazy with that much money on the table.” Ryan explained.

“Don’t worry, I’ve got my best guys watching. He’s safer here than in his own bed.”

 Ryan simply nodded.

 Gavin made a loud noise of disappointment, and the crowd followed suit.

 The security officer looked to Ryan, “Do you even have permission to cut him off? I mean, in all honesty, it’s better for us for him to blow it all.”

 Ryan shook his head, “Unfortunately, I can’t tell him how to spend his money, or I should say; his parents’ money. Once he’s too drunk to stand, however, I’m dragging him out of here.”

“Judging by how much he’s leaning on the table for support, he’s almost there.”

 Gavin gave a whoop and the crowd cheered. He threw his hands up in celebration and immediately lost balance. He toppled into some people who managed to hold their ground and push him back upright.

 Ryan sighed and went to grab him.

 Gavin felt a hand tightly grab his upper arm and steady him. He was going to protest but saw it belonged to a less than impressed Ryan.

“You are done for tonight.” Ryan told him.

“Ahhhh nooo… Okay maybe.” Gavin put up his hand to cover a small burp, “Where’s my room?”

 Ryan waved over the security officer and ordered him to cash Gavin out. Hand still on Gavin he led him off of the casino floor towards the elevators.

 Gavin was pretty much dependent on Ryan for balance at this point and he wouldn’t stop babbling on.

“Is it called a palm tree because the leaves are fingers? Are branches fingers? Not much of a tree, are they? Like a big knob with greenery out the top. Little leaf hats. Knob hats.” Gavin was spouting a pure stream of consciousness as the elevator door closed.

“Your head’s a special place isn’t it?” Ryan commented.

“And yours?” He went to poke Ryan’s temple but he leaned away, “It’s probably a right horror show in there.”

 Behind his shades Ryan rolled his eyes in response and pulled Gavin from the elevator as it reached their floor.

 Gavin was a mess of limbs as he was pushed through the door into his suite.

 He stood in the entry looking slightly lost, “This is a nice place isn’t it?”

“Enjoy it. I have a regular room two floors down.” Ryan informed him. He pulled out two key cards for the room, “One is yours, don’t leave the room without it. I’m keeping the other.”

 Gavin grabbed a key card, “You sure you don’t want to tie it to my wrist so I don’t lose it?” He mocked.

“Don’t tempt me to staple it to your hand.” Ryan responded and left the room, shutting the door behind him.

~*~

  Jack pulled the armoured van up to the loading bay. Ray nervously fingered his ID.

 They both stepped out and walked around to stand at the back of the van.

Security personnel came out to meet them.

 Jack pulled out his clipboard, “Alright, we’re going to need a confirmation on amount and denomination. We’ll need your supervisor to sign and date here,” He flipped a couple pages, “And here.”

“Hand it here.” One of the security officers said. He took the paperwork and flipped through before pulling out a pen. He signed where required and motioned for his men to start loading up the van.

 They grabbed large black duffel bags and began stacking them within. It only took a few minutes.

“Thank you.” Jack tipped his cap and stamped the papers giving one copy to the security officer.

 He and Ray quickly locked up and then hopped back into their seats.

 Jack started the engine and pulled away.

“Any second now they’ll receive word of how we knocked out their regular guys.” Ray was watching the mirrors.

 Someone ran out of the building towards the security team. They were gesturing violently.

“Jack I think they figured it out. Haul ass!” Ray was now turned around in his seat to keep an eye on the action.

 Jack didn’t waste time and immediately sped up. Once he hit the street he raced for a few blocks before slowing to the speed of surrounding traffic.

 The quiet didn’t last long. Sirens came blaring at them from all directions and Jack had to floor the gas to stay ahead. He weaved in and out of traffic, even swerving into the oncoming lanes.

 Jack was confident in his ability and couldn’t help but momentarily smirk when he noticed Ray with his knuckles white and nails clawing into the upholstery.

 The cops were having trouble keeping up, but persisted in their pursuit.

 When Jack felt they were far enough behind to have lost visual on the van, he pulled up the radio.

“Geoff, get ready.” He ordered into the receiver.

“Roger.” Geoff’s voice came crackling back.

 Jack looped around and took a sharp turn down a narrow one way street. Buildings on either side were his cover as he exited on the other side and jumped the curb up into an above ground parking structure.

 The instant he rounded the first turn within the building, Geoff sped his identical van out around the other side and onto the street.

 Jack and Ray didn’t waste time; the instant their van was shifted into park, they leapt out.

 Ray pulled out a small sharp knife and ran it along the edge of the window to pry loose the vinyl wrap that covered the van.

 The vinyl was stubborn in spots but he got it all off. Now the van not only sported a different security brand but was also a completely different colour.

 While Ray fought with the wrap, Jack had grabbed a small electric screwdriver. He busied himself with removing the license plates and then attaching a new set.

 Ray bundled up the tacky plastic and threw it in the back of the van with the money and their old plates.

 Jumping in the van they headed off once more, but at a leisurely pace.

 Always cautious, Jack circled back a few times to ensure that the cops had taken the bait and gone after Geoff. Once he was convinced that the sirens were no longer pursuing him, he got on the freeway and headed towards their decided upon safehouse.

~*~

 Geoff knew their little switch-a-roo had worked as soon as he heard the sirens behind him. A quick glance in his mirrors only confirmed that the cops were now chasing him.

 This meant Jack and Ray were safe and taking home some bonus cash.

 But now it was Geoff who had to lose the cops, and he had to do it the old fashioned way.

 He headed out of the city and into the desert. He trusted Ray’s judgment when it came to weaponry and was convinced he would have the upper hand in a shootout. Poor saps had no idea what they had stumbled upon, and Geoff tended to be more hesitant than some of his colleagues when it came to killing cops. They were only doing their job. But he saw no other option here; once they called in a chopper his chances of getting away significantly dropped.

 Turning the wheel violently he jumped the van into the shallow ditch and out the other side. The desert shrubbery drummed against the sides of his vehicle which shook so hard Geoff was afraid he would bite off his tongue.

 He could hear a couple cops screech and fishtail after him. Checking his mirrors again he saw he had four patrol cars on him.

 It was now or never.

 He brought the van into a sideways drift aided by the dusty ground. Ensuring the driver’s side was facing away from the cops when the vehicle finally came to a halt, he quickly grabbed everything he could and jumped out. Little was better body armour than an armoured van, but he still slipped on a vest before ensuring everything was loaded.

Semiautomatic, pistol, pistol, rifle, and… Grenades? Geoff pulled one out. Indeed they were grenades; it appeared Ray was taking a page from Michael’s book.

 There was also a small canister of pepper spray that was painted a bright pink. Geoff shook his head and pocketed it anyway. Ray still found it funny to make what weaponry he could that eye burning fluorescent shade.

 The cops had been shouting for his surrender but they had no idea how well he had armed himself in the meantime.

 Geoff dropped on his belly and began to fire off semiautomatic rounds from below the van. This immediately took out the nearest three cops at the shins. They had been using their patrol car doors as cover. It was standard practice, and that’s what made it predictable.

 Two cops remained and they had plastered themselves flat against the back of the same car.

 Geoff fired some cover rounds to keep them in hiding as he repositioned. He ran around the side of the van and threw a grenade at their patrol car before ducking into a roll towards the nearest car.

 Once the blast detonated, Geoff wasted no time in finishing off the cops he had simply downed. Confident they were all dead, he jumped into the least damaged cruiser and drove it back onto the road.

 He bashed out the dashboard camera and sped down the highway. Ditching the cruiser was now his priority. It was too easy to track once they figured out he had taken it.

Salvation came in the form of a pair of taillights ahead of him. After fumbling around for a few seconds he found the lights and siren.

 It wasn’t long until the small sedan realized he wanted it to pull over, so it slowed to a stop at the side of the road.

 Geoff stopped behind the sedan and got out of the cruiser. He approached cautiously.

Reaching the driver’s side he began to shout, “Get out of the car!” He brandished the semiautomatic to make his point clear.

 The driver was a young male college student as per his varsity gear, “Don’t shoot! Don’t shoot!”

“Out of the car! NOW!” Geoff motioned with his gun.

 The panicked driver agreed to do as he was told and quickly scrambled from the car.

 Without so much as looking back, Geoff got in the car, slammed the door, and took off once more.

~*~

 A muted buzz coming from underneath Ryan’s pillow woke him. Eyes still half lidded he pulled his phone out to see what the notification was.

 A text from Gavin:

  _He_

Ryan rubbed his eyes and sat up. Was this drunken gibberish at 4 am or an unfinished call for help?

 He decided to treat it as the latter, and if it was no emergency he promised he would make Gavin’s hangover a living hell.

 In an instant he was dressed, armed, and out the door. He sprinted the two flights of stairs, and raced down the hall to Gavin’s suite.

 He pounded on the door, “Simon?”

 No answer.

 He tried his key card and the light flashed green. The knob turned freely, but the door had been bolted shut by its inhabitant.

 Ryan banged on the door again, “So fucking help me, Ga-Simon! Open the damn door!”

 Once more there was no response.

 Screw subtlety; Ryan inspected the frame and door. He wouldn’t get far trying to kick it down.

 He looked around and when his eyes saw the glass encased fire axe at the end of the hall, they lit up.

 Some broken glass later and Ryan was hacking away at the hinges of the door. After the fourth swing he had only to kick the door twice before it came crashing down. There was no way that the neighbours had not heard the ruckus, but at this point he did not care.

 He walked in stepping over the door. It was too quiet; If Gavin was in the room he would have made himself known by this point. No one could sleep through that noise. The door could only be bolted from the inside; a hotel security measure that prevented a guest from being permanently locked out of their room. Unless Gavin had scaled twelve stories, he was still in the room.

 That, or someone else was here.

 Ryan immediately went on full alert. He switched which hand held the axe and drew his gun.

 He had made his presence loudly known, but still carefully made his way further into the room.

 The sound of fabric being disturbed drew his attention.

 He whipped around with his gun raised only to stare down the barrel of another.

“FBI! Drop your weapons! Hands where I can see them!” A female FBI agent yelled at him from behind her weapon.

 Ryan began to size her up when a male voice from behind him interrupted him.

“Drop your weapon or I’ll shoot!” The male agent insisted.

Begrudgingly Ryan dropped both his axe and gun.

“Hands behind your head!” The female agent ordered and kicked his weapons far away.

As Ryan lifted his hands the agent behind him grabbed them and immediately handcuffed him.

 After a thorough search for further weapons, Ryan was shoved forward and led out of the room.

 They marched him out into the hall, and just as he believed he had found a feasible way to take down the two agents, two more were waiting in the elevator for him.

 Two agents Ryan would have risked, but outnumbered four to one he would only end up shot and on the ground. The handcuffs didn’t help either.

Reaching the ground floor they took him around through a service hallway. Ryan knew that normally they would have just marched him straight through the lobby, but such a scene was bad for business. Undoubtedly casino staff had asked they take him out through a back way.

 The employee hallways were much less glamorous than those open to guests. Painted white the concrete walls reflected the harsh glow of the fluorescent lights above. The odd employee would give them a cursory glance before hurrying by. There weren’t many walking these halls so early, and for that Ryan was thankful.

 A maintenance worker pushing a large wheeled toolbox approached them.

 Michael looked up to see four FBI agents blocking the hall, with Ryan held between them.

 The two of them gave each other a quick glance.

“Oh geeze, sorry. Here maybe I can move over to the side a bit more.” Michael acted flustered and heaved the toolbox over towards the wall.

 The agents had to break formation to get around him.

 Ryan kicked out the leg of the nearest agent and threw his momentum into a head-butt, taking down another agent. He stomped on both of them as Michael took down the two others by striking them over the head with a hammer in each hand.

“Keys!” Ryan hurriedly whispered at Michael.

 Michael tossed the hammers back into the toolbox and began searching pockets.

 Ryan kicked the head of an agent that had begun to stir.

“Can you hurry a little?!” Ryan complained.

“I’ll show you fucking hurrying- Found them!” Michael pulled out the handcuff keys and nimbly freed Ryan.

 Ryan bent down and grabbed his gun, as well as one of the agents’ guns which he handed to Michael. He took aim at the head of the female agent.

“Ryan are you fucking nuts?! We have to leave now! Gunshots will only raise an alarm! We’re already on camera!” Michael’s whisper was as close to a scream as it could be.

 Ryan lowered his weapon and nodded, “Let’s go.”

 The two of them sprinted down the hall and out the nearest employee exit.

“My car’s down there!” Michael pointed as he ran.

 Ryan had no clue what vehicle Michael had pointed to, so he just followed.

 Michael had been stuck driving a shitty station wagon for the last few months as part of his cover. He got in behind the wheel and started the engine as Ryan rushed to get in the passenger seat.

“We’re so fucked. Fucking FBI? Here?!” Michael was near hysterical, “How did they fucking know?!”

 Ryan was watching their mirrors closely, “Do I look like I know? Handcuffs aren’t a good look on me!”

 Michael took a moment to compose himself and then realized, “Where’s Gavin?”

 "I don’t know; I got a text from him so I rushed to his room. It was locked and the feds were inside. There was no sign of him.“ Ryan explained.

"The feds have Gavin?!”

 "I don’t know.“

"FUCK!” Michael slapped his hands down on the wheel, “We have to let Geoff know.”

 Ryan went for his phone only to find nothing, “Shit.”

“What now?”

“They have my phone.”

“Are you for fucking real?”

 "It’s a burn phone; not my personal, but they’ll still have its call history.“

 Michael pulled his own phone out and unlocked it, "Call Geoff. I’ll get us to the safehouse.”

~*~

 Lindsay was shoved roughly to the floor of the makeshift cell. It was a storage room with cinder block walls and heavy metal door. A flickering fluorescent above illuminated some dusty old game machines around the walls.

 The woman who had tossed her into the room stood above her, with her two security personnel blocking the door.

“You think you can just slap on a wig and walk in? You dare steal from our clientele? Lindsay Jones, I would think you would be smarter than that. Especially when doing it in a casino owned by Heyman. You are in for a world of hurt.

 See, my boss considers stealing from the pockets of a customer the same as stealing from his own wallet.” The woman advanced on Lindsay and grabbed her by the collar, “And tonight has been a really bad night. We’re itching to make someone pay.”

“What, did your boss force you to work the weekend shift? Or did your boyfriend finally dump you after realizing what a bitch you are?” Lindsay said without breaking eye contact.

 The woman punched Lindsay.

“We know you weren’t working alone! Give us the names of your teammates or you’ll know just how hospitable we can be.” She threatened.

“Oh fuck off. I work alone. Does petty theft have all your panties in a tangle, or are you just jealous I’m prettier than you?” Lindsay spat and braced herself for another hit.

 The woman didn’t punch her again, “Don’t play dumb, bitch. You were playing the part of distraction while your friends stole our deposit. Tell us their names and we’ll let you off lightly.”

“Bitch, I don’t need some sort of support crew. I take what I want. What the hell would I do with that much money?” Lindsay argued.

“Fine. We’ll see if you’re more willing to talk after some time alone.” The woman turned to leave and as she went through the door she almost walked into a large man, “Sir, my apologies but she isn’t talking.”

 The large bearded man walked past her into the room.

 Lindsay recognized him immediately, “Gilby. Joel has you running errands again I see?”

“Shut up, Lindsay.” He motioned for the others to leave, “You fucked up. We know you’re with the AH Crew.”

“Look, just because you marry a guy, it doesn’t mean you become part of his little boy’s club.” She argued.

“No it doesn’t. But you were part of their crew long before that. Don’t bother lying about it.” Adam Ellis crossed his arms and his septum piercing caught the light.

 Lindsay changed her argument, “I came here to have some good fashioned fun, and yes, maybe I did target this casino for reasons… but you know I work alone with this shit, and whatever else you guys are trying to pin on me must have just been coincidence.”

“So Gavin being here on a fake name, the same night as you, which is also the same night one of our deposits disappears, is all freak coincidence?” Adam was not going to fall for it.

“Wait, Gavin was here?!” Lindsay did her best to look surprised.

“Don’t take me for an idiot. You guys planned this all out to draw the FBI here. Yes, we know about the agents who followed you guys here. Consider yourself lucky we grabbed Gavin before they did.”

 This was very much news to Lindsay. The FBI had been here? For them? Did Geoff know?

“You hurt one hair on Michael’s boi-” She was cut off mid-threat.

“Worry about yourself.” He uncrossed his arms and grabbed her shoulder, “Joel’s going to want to deal with you personally. Money is one thing, but dropping feds on our doorstep is downright bad etiquette.”

“It’s fucking raining feds these days, you can’t possibly believe I’d risk my hide like that.” Lindsay let herself be led out.

“You would if Geoff asked you to.” Adam argued.

 "I don’t own Geoff shit.“

"Sure, and I only work here for the dental benefits.”

~*~

 The whole room was silent as they rewatched the security footage.

“They went in looking for Gavin Free. Found this guy instead.” One of the six FBI agents watching muttered and shook his head.

 Not one person dared make a noise as they once more watched the handcuffed man kick the legs out from one of their peers and head-butt another as Michael Jones took a hammer to the others’ heads.

 The video was paused as Ryan pointed his gun at the downed agents and looked over to Michael.

 The lead female agent looked to their outdated photograph of James Haywood. She held it up next to the screen, “I think we found Haywood, when we were after Free… Michael Jones just happened to be there… and now we have four agents in the hospital.”

“They’d be dead if Michael hadn’t drawn Haywood’s attention away.” One agent pointed out and took the remote, “He was setting up a killing shot.” they hit play, “Michael starts gesturing and saying something, so Haywood hesitates and then leaves.”

 "I think those rumours we called fanciful, may be truer than previously thought. Especially those in regards to his mental state. He took the hotel door down with an axe. We’re lucky no one was DOA.“

"They’re still not out of the woods yet.” Another agent corrected.

 The lead female agent stood and turned to her team, “We have confirmation on the presence of Gavin Free, Michael Jones, and who we assume is James Haywood. James and Michael fled the scene and Gavin is currently MIA. We know there were at least 2-3 others involved if casino security and local PD are to be believed. Local PD lost six officers, so they are not happy to hand this one over. Six officers dead, four agents in the hospital, and nothing but some security footage to show for it.

 This is not acceptable. We let them get the better of us.”

 One of her agents spoke up, “So what now? Do we have any leads? Anything?”

 Another answered, “It’s not much, but this casino is owned by Joel Heyman. If Gavin Free disappeared from both our and the AH Crew’s radars-”

 The lead agent understood, “Then Heyman is probably involved. He sniffed them out before we did.”

“We know he has a mansion outside the city. If he’s taken Mr. Free anywhere it’s there. Until he ransoms him off or kills him…” An agent added.

 The lead agent nodded and then ordered, “Rush the warrant, and suit up.”

~*~

 Michael slammed the car door shut and Ryan was already approaching the door of the bankrupt industrial bakery they were calling home.

 As far as safehouses went, it was dustier than most but also had the inescapable aroma of burnt baked goods gone stale.

 Ryan walked through the small office and onto the factory floor where their whole setup was.

“Geoff-” Ryan was cut off by the loud slam of a door.

 The slam was followed by Michael yelling, “They’ve fucking got Gavin!”

 No one who was there looked surprised; Geoff had informed them of the situation.

 Seated by their computers, Kdin, Matt, and Jeremy exchanged a look and then turned to Jack who sat next to Geoff. Ray silently watched, while seated in a corner.

 Jack immediately turned to Geoff.

 Michael noticed and his face turned red as he inhaled sharply. His next words were surprisingly calm, “Where. The fuck. Is. Lindsay?”

 Geoff exhaled and stood, he grabbed at his moustache, “She was taken in by casino security.”

“SHE GOT GOT?!” Michael’s voice cracked.

 Geoff was clearly distraught, so he gestured for Jack to explain, “Lindsay and Gavin were somehow found out and grabbed without us knowing.” Jack looked to Geoff, “Geoff got a call that very clearly explained the terms for getting them back.”

 Both Michael and Ryan looked at each other in confusion.

 It was Ryan who spoke, “That’s not how the feds operate.”

 It was everyone else’s turn to be confused.

“Feds? What feds?” Ray asked.

“Yeah, we’re talking Joel and Adam here.” Jack confirmed.

“Oh that’s great! Rye-bread and I almost end up in federal supermax while my wife and boi are being held hostage!” Michael bellowed.

“You tango-ed with the FBI? They were there? When you said there was agents in Gavin’s room I assumed they were Joel’s!” Geoff explained.

 "I was handcuffed and being marched out by four federal agents, Geoff.“ Ryan informed him.

"So we’re dealing with Joel AND the FBI?!” Kdin slumped down further in his chair.

“Fuck.” Jack swore quietly, “Why are the Feds here?”

“We don’t have any leaks, there’s no way they could have known what we had planned.” Geoff assured them, “It had to be coincidence, or something.”

 Ryan looked over to what remained of the B-team, “Or our conmen were too eager on their own time and got themselves on a federal watch list.”

“Excuse me?!” Kdin stood, “They were clearly after you! There is no reason to link us to- to some career hitman, or whatever you want to call yourself.”

 "I was in the wrong place at the wrong time; not stealing grandma’s pearls.“ Ryan motioned towards the small stash of jewelry and wallets they had scored.

"The FBI isn’t interested in petty theft.” Jeremy interjected.

“But they are interested in career criminals that cross state borders.” Ryan argued.

“Look who’s talking!” Matt gestured at Ryan.

 "I have no records.“ Ryan crossed his arms.

"Well excuse us ‘criminals’ for stealing shit while you go out and murder people for money!” Kdin stepped forward.

 Ryan uncrossed his arms and turned his full attention on Kdin, “I don’t need pay to kill someone.”

 Kdin snorted at the threat but sat himself back down.

“Children, enough!” Geoff ordered, “I know we’re all on edge but let’s not take it out on each other.

"WAFFLE-O.” Ray reminded the group of his acronym.

 There was an awkward silence as they each tried to comprehend the situation they were now in.

“You mentioned a call? What do they want for them?” Michael did his best to sound calm but his hands were fists.

“First of all, I need to know that it wasn’t all in vain and you succeeded.” Geoff looked Michael in the eye.

 Michael pulled out the USB and tossed it to Geoff who caught it.

“Installed without error. I hope it was fucking worth it.” Michael informed.

“Matt-” Geoff began.

 Matt immediately loaded up his computer to check whether he could connect, “I’m on it, give me a minute.”

“They want our surrender.” Geoff told Ryan and Michael, “Also the money we took.”

“Two point seven five million.” Ray specified.

“That’s good at least.” Ryan commented.

“What part of this is good?!” Michael turned to Ryan.

“Ryan is right. It means they think we were just after the money.” Jack elaborated.

 Geoff snorted, “I hope so. It depends on how much they know. We rarely employ more than six in the field at a time and they know that. This is hardly enough money to get us that excited, so I’m sure they have suspicions.”

 Matt turned his chair around, “I’ve connected.”

 Geoff walked over to his screen, “Good. Don’t touch anything, and get the details over to Gus. We have this at least.”

“It wasn’t worth the price if we can’t get Lindsay back.” Ryan stated fairly dryly, but he really was worried. He’d worked with Lindsay longer than he had the AH Crew. She was one of the very few people he would trust with his life, and wasn’t about to let Geoff cut her loose.

 Michael looked at Ryan with a glare.

“And Gavin too, I guess.” Ryan added upon noticing the glare.

 "I have it under control.“ Geoff made a calming gesture.

"Sure.” Ray muttered.

 Michael crossed his arms, “Sure as fucking hell looks like it, Geoff.”

 Geoff gave a long exhale and dropped down into his chair, “Look the feds complicate things, but I say we forget about them for now and focus on Joel. They want a surrender, they’ll get one.”

“Wait, what? I didn’t sign up for this-” Ray was cut off by Geoff continuing.

 "I take the money and demand a trade. Them for me and the cash. Hell of a bargain.“ Geoff told them.

"Geoff, there’s no reason why they wouldn’t just keep the three of you and the money.” Jack pointed out.

 Geoff shook his head, “You’re right, but I know Joel: he’ll want to gloat as much as possible and savour his victory. I’d be a trophy, while Gavin and Lindsay would be nothing more than a drain on resources.”

“So he fucking kills them! I don’t follow your plan!” Ryan explained.

 Ray added his opinion, “Not to mention Joel’s nothing like Burnie; he has no problem going back on his word and being unpredictable as fuck.”

“I’m with Ray. Joel isn’t just going to be talked into doing what you want.” Jeremy said and was supported by a nod from Matt.

“I’ve known Joel longer than any of you. Hell I’ve known him longer than I’ve know you. He might be seen as one who causes chaos, but in truth he hates it. I’m going to go to his place, alone. You’ll have to trust me, but I know he’s not going to kill them while all of us are there.”

“You think he’s so afraid of getting his floor dirty that he won’t get rid of what have been two thorns in his side?” Ryan wasn’t going to believe it.

 "I don’t know, Ryan. I mean I don’t think I’d stage an execution at my place. Honestly.“ Ray tried to convince himself as well as Ryan.

 "I don’t like it.” Michael said.

“We can’t exactly raid his place, okay?” Geoff responded, “I’m not the self-sacrificial type! It’s not as if I enjoy the idea.”

 Ryan raised an eyebrow. He stopped himself from arguing that when Gavin was involved Geoff would all but lie down and die, if it meant saving him.

“There are too many holes in this. Way too many ways it can go wrong. You can’t just expect us to sit here.” Jack gently told Geoff.

“It’s a direct order. None of you are allowed to interfere. The situation is too hot as it is, if you try anything this trade will become a hostage situation and shootout.” Geoff told them.

“So what if you’re wrong?!” Ryan protested, “Joel decides to do what he always does and take everything. _You_ can die a martyr but that is not a decision you can make on their behalf!”

 Geoff was upset by the amount of agreement Ryan’s argument garnered, “Do you have a better idea?!”

“Yes! Anything would be better than this!” Ryan answered.

“Fine then! What would you do?” Geoff’s voice was raised.

 Ryan paused, before proposing, “We use the FBI.”

 Geoff gave a sharp laugh, “Sure! Of course, let’s do that. I hope you have nice clothes for court on Monday!”

 "I never said it was a good plan, I just said it’s better than yours!“ Ryan was raising his voice now.

Shouting wasn’t uncommon within the group, but with this much tension in the room, violence was eagerly waiting on the horizon.

"Alright so a three way shootout and life sentences for all!” Geoff said sarcastically.

“No, it would be a two way shootout. Joel’s men and the FBI. We use the chaos as cover and get in and out within minutes. If we can get FBI uniforms it would be even easier. We just tip them off to some sort of deal going down-” Ryan explained.

“I’m not going to run into the middle of feds and guns and god knows what. Unlike you I have a sense of self preservation and can’t take out twelve guys at once.” Kdin commented.

 "I wouldn’t expect B-team in the field. You would just get yourselves shot or killed.“ Ryan dismissed with a wave.

"My plan goes wrong; it’s three of us in trouble. Your plan goes wrong and it’s all BUT three of us ending up dead or in federal prison.” Geoff pointed out, “I’m benching all of you and doing this alone. If I so much as see any of you I’ll fucking shoot you myself!”

“Don’t make me shoot you first.” Ryan wasn’t one to let a threat slide.

“Ryan.” Michael spoke up once more and commanded everyone’s attention, “Geoff you do your thing. I’ll keep everyone here.”

“Thank you, Michael!” Geoff responded and stood once more. He grabbed the keys to the armoured van that still held the money.

“Geoff, don’t do this.” Jack warned, but Geoff ignored him as he left the building.

 Ryan turned to Michael, “Really?!”

 Michael looked back at him before turning to everyone else there, “Geoff gets a one hour head start. Then we come in and fuck everyone’s shit up.”

 Ray smiled, “Done.”

“Ryan, the FBI has your burn phone. Text it with Joel’s address.

 Joel may have Lindsay and Gavin hostage but he doesn’t know we have a hostage of our own-” Michael began.

“We have access to his servers but they’re bound to be backed up remotely. We can’t threaten-” Matt tried to explain.

“Not his servers, Matt. His whole damn casino and everyone in it. I’ve rigged the place with enough explosives to send it to the moon.” Michael finished.

“Uh,” Jeremy looked around to see if anyone else was going to say it first, “That’s an act of domestic terrorism and with the FBI already here… not to mention the collateral…”

“He’s right about the bystanders Michael. You can threaten Joel - maybe set a fire? - but can’t bring the whole place down.” Jack wanted to make sure Michael understood the consequences.

“Set a fire, clear the building, and then bring it down.” Ray nodded at bringing the two ideas together, “Of course only if we need to. But having it be a real threat will give us the upper hand.”

“Then why bring the FBI in at all? Let them flounder oblivious to our ploy, or better yet send them incorrect info about the location of the exchange.” Ryan proposed.

 Michael liked the idea, “Yes, do that! Get them out of our hair while we deal with Joel. But we’ll have to actually give them something or they’ll realize they’ve been misdirected.”

 "I can call some guys I know, get the 411 on any local dealers. We can then send the FBI their way. Even once they learn it’s the wrong guys, they won’t exactly be able to ignore it. Especially if the criminal party is somehow informed of the FBI’s presence and it becomes a shootout.“ Kdin had grown up in the area and was confident he could pull the right strings.

"Do it.” Michael pointed at him, “Let’s get the details sorted, and suit up.” He ordered the others.

~*~

 Geoff was escorted from his van and brought all the way into the terracotta styled estate. The grounds were home to mostly palms and cacti, but in the early morning darkness they were wonderfully lit. As were the meandering pathways through the gardens around small water features and stone seating areas.

 The mansion itself was only two stories high, but it sprawled out across the property creating a couple large courtyards.

 Geoff himself was a fan of flagrant displays of wealth, but couldn’t help but wrinkle his brow in disgust. He wouldn’t admire a rival’s taste.

 His small entourage finally left him in a high ceilinged room. The centerpiece was the winding couch that took up most of the room like some sleeping serpent. On either side a large gas fireplace gave the cavern of a room a warm glow. A large wrought iron chandelier was the main source of light, and it was reflected in the floor to ceiling windows that over looked the pool outside.

 Joel marched into the room from out by the pool. He was dressed in a thin sweater and jeans, and held a beer.

“Geoff! How absolutely delightful that you could make it on such short notice!” Joel greeted with his arms wide open, “Want a beer? Whiskey? I’ve got that moonshine you’re partial to-”

“Cut the crap, Joel.” Geoff crossed his arms.

“Well, fuck you too, Geoff. I’m just trying to be nice here. You’re my guest, and probably will be for a while. Best to start things off on the right foot.” Joel put his arms down and took a swig of beer.

“I’m sure your hospitality will be fantastic.”

“Ahh, you know I won’t be the one beating information from you.” Joel smiled.  

“Where are my two crew members?” Geoff had had enough of beating around the bush.

 Joel shrugged, “They’re around. They’re alive. But I’d rather just talk about you right now, and just what you thought you were trying to achieve by robbing me.” Joel took a sip, “You know that money’s nothing in the casino business. It’s also not worth the full scale operation you had going. Explain.” He sat down on a portion of the couch facing Geoff and gestured for Geoff to sit across from him.

 Geoff was reluctant to accept the offer, but did so anyway. He retaliated by placing his feet up on the coffee table between them.

“Really?!” Joel gestured at Geoff’s shoes on the table, “I know you’re from Alabama, but I didn’t realise you were raised in a barn.”

“You have the money, you have me, where are Lindsay and Gavin?” Geoff was going to remain to the point. Joel was very good at getting people off topic.

 "I told you, they’re fine. Now tell me what the fuck you were trying to achieve with this two bit heist of yours.“

"We wanted the money, alright? Is that so hard to believe?”

“Then why were the FBI involved? I find it very rude to have them dropped on my doorstep!”

“Do you honestly think I’d risk my people like that? So I could lure the feds? I know you think you’re hot shit, but you ain’t worth anywhere near that!” Geoff paused, “We genuinely needed the money to pay off a guy ok? Normally it wouldn’t matter but he demanded the cash faster than we could round it up. I figured it would be just easier to take it from you. It’s not a huge amount, and you could just claim insurance on it. No harm, no foul.”

“How incredibly considerate.” Joel clearly wasn’t believing it, “So the FBI were an unfortunate coincidence? You were careless enough to let them track you down?”

 Geoff looked away and tugged at his mustache, “I fucked up, ok? Is that what you want to hear? The cunning and all-knowing Joel Heyman got to my men before the FBI did. Ya happy? I fucked up and I’m here to pay for it.”

 Joel squinted, “Ya know, we’ve been trying to tear up your little crew for years now. Yet you come here, on my home turf, and expect me not to take advantage of such an opportunity? I now have two of your core members, and big boss himself. With the rest undoubtedly nearby, why wouldn’t I just collect the whole set?”

“Well you’ve finally succeeded. Without me they’re just a bunch of disorganized assholes. Assholes I ordered to skip town and lay low. So good luck.

 Anyway, they don’t know loyalty to anything but the greenback. Especially Haywood, as I’m sure you know. You want them? Just put the right amount of money on the line and they’re yours.” Geoff leaned back.

“It’s still a mystery to me why you risk keeping a backstabber like him around.”

“He’s damn useful; if hard to control.” Geoff explained with a wave of his hand, “You have all you need and far more than you could have ever wanted. Gavin and Lindsay don’t know shit about shit, and if you’re so confident you can break me, just let them run and cry to their friends.”

“Or, ya know, I just don’t. I kill them and remove all future possibility of them ever bothering me again.” Joel suggested.

“You know I’d be lying if I said I didn’t care for them, but I’m not the only one their deaths would upset. Michael Jones for one, might just level half the city in revenge. You’ve got his wife. I told him to leave it to me, but I know he will not rest until he believes you’ve paid your due. He would easily afford Ray’s help, maybe even Ryan. I don’t know, depends on how pissed you make him.”

“And just what I need is another vendetta.” Joel sighed and finished the beer, “You’re convincing, ya know that? Too bad I’ve already made my decision.” He smiled.

 ~*~

 Ray put down the binoculars and spoke into his headset, “I see maybe fifteen guys patrolling the grounds. There are clearly more inside. Can’t pinpoint Geoff, Gavin, or Lindsay. Place has lots of windows, though. So stay alert.” He switched to the scope of his rifle. He had gotten himself midway up a lone cellphone tower on a plot of land next to Joel’s. The position was awkward and the constant sway messed with him, but hey, reception was great.

 Ryan lay camouflaged within desert scrub as close to the house as he could risk. Scrub was great cover but it made movement noisy. Any closer and he risked being heard by the guard that stood a mere twenty feet in front of him. The gardens may have been lit, but this cast deep shadows he could use for cover. It also ensured the guards were night blind.

 Ryan pulled out his own binoculars, “Looks like a private security firm. These guys are branded. I don’t think they’re Heyman’s.” He whispered, and was thankful for the near deafening din of crickets.

 Jack was in the air with Michael several miles away to prevent detection, “Michael and I are in position and ready to swoop in when you need us.”

“You sure you got this, Ryan? I would still feel better on the ground with you.” Michael radioed over.

“Like I said, outnumbered like this, stealth is our best option. Double the feet on the ground, double our chances of being detected.” Ryan didn’t want to have the argument again.

“Ryan, all eyes are off your guy. Check the windows and go!” Ray urgently informed him.

 Ryan looked to the windows. No one was gazing out. His only problem now was that the lone guard was facing towards Ryan’s hiding spot. He would not be able to close the gap between them before being shot or raising an alarm.

Silenced weapons were far from silent and even if they were the muzzle flash wouldn’t go unnoticed in the dark.

 He reached back and felt the hard edge of the small blade. Geoff was always vocal about Ryan’s use of knives, but he wasn’t here to comment.

 With a quick motion he threw the throwing knife and charged the guard.

 The guard was too preoccupied with the piece of sharpened metal lodged below his Adams apple to retaliate. As he fell Ryan grabbed him and pulled the knife across his neck to silence his gurgling.

 He got his arms under the man’s shoulders and prepared to drag him into the shadows.

“Ryan, behind you!” Ray’s warning was late as another uniformed guard seemingly materialized from the shadows behind Ryan.

 Ryan dropped the body and whipped around drawing his gun only to see one already pointed at him.

 The was a tense moment as they both had their weapons pointed at each other, before a flicker of recognition came to both of them.

“Ryan?” The guard lowered their gun.

 Ryan was hesitant to lower his but upon seeing him take on a relaxed stance he followed suit, “Miles?”

“No fucking way, man! How the fuck you been?” Miles beamed, “It’s been years!”

“Miles, I’m sorta in the middle of something.” Ryan subtly gestured to the downed guard.

“Yeah that’s Marco. He was alright. Won’t be impossible to replace, though.” Miles continued.

“Ryan who the fuck is that guy?! He’s going to compromise everything!” Ray was freaking out.

“Look, Miles, you’re gonna get me killed here.” Ryan told him through gritted teeth.

“Actually I’m probably saving you.” Miles put his hands on his hips, “See I went straight few years back. Dropped everything and used the money to start a small private security firm. I don’t know what contract you’re working on, but mine is to watch this place.

 Marco over there was an employee of mine. Ex-con that also wanted to go straight. I’ll be honest, the pay isn’t as good, but there’s a lot less murder.” He looked back at Marco, “Well, for the most part.”

 Ryan straightened, Miles had been a competing hitman around the same time Ryan had been most active. They rarely crossed each other’s path until they both ended up with extended contracts for the same mafioso. Forced to work together, they had come to admire each other’s skillset. It was a shame to see him squander his skills like this.

“That unfortunately puts us on opposing sides. See, your paycheck is holding my paycheck hostage.” Ryan explained.

 Miles sighed, “And I bet your paycheck is bigger than mine. But either way Heyman’s a pretty important contract for my firm. To void it would have my personnel which consist of mostly ex-cons and ex-military folk, go home empty handed until we find our next job. You can understand my predicament here. I could just call it quits, round everyone up and leave. Explain we encountered a conflict of interest. But I’m going to need compensation.”

 It was Ryan’s turn to sigh, “How much will it cost me to have you look the other way?”

“Well there’s thirty three-” His eyes went to Marco, “Thirty two of us here, soo… What’s the contract worth?” Miles asked.

“Really, Ryan? You’re going with this?” Jack commented. They were all privy to the conversation.

“Jack, if it fucking gets them back I don’t care what he does.” Michael told him.

“This contract’s… different. It’s not a lump sum.” Ryan tried to explain.

“Don’t fucking tell me you’re doing it for free.” Miles dropped his hands to his sides.

“It’s complicated.” Ryan scratched the back of his neck.

“Are you for real?! Who are they and what the fuck did they do to you?” Miles was incredulous, “Do they have a bear trap on your balls?”

“Hey, I’m not the one who’s gone legit here!” Ryan retorted, “I told you it’s complicated and I mean it.”

“Ryan for the love of God, I will pay you to pay him off, just get a fucking move on!” Ray informed him.

“BM Vagabond working for free… OK how about this? Since I’m legit and not taking contracts anymore and it doesn’t mean I have any less people I want gone… I’m going to take advantage of your free work spree and ask a favour in exchange.” Miles tilted his head and smiled.

 "I don’t care if you have to fucking suck his dick, just say yes!“ Michael screamed.

"You know my rules, if you abide by them, then yes, you can have your free favour.” Ryan slowly shook his head frustrated.

“A'ight, the name’s Balaji Gopala. Human trafficker. Owe him money that I’m not planning on paying.” Miles explained.

 Ryan squinted, “Really does sound like your business is built legit. If you expect me to track him overseas-”

 Miles laughed, “What are you? Racist? He’s in Mexico. Last I heard at least.” He stuck out his hand, “Deal?”

 Ryan was hesitant but his teammates were yelling in his ear. He took Miles’ hand, “Fine. Deal.”

 Miles clapped his hands together, “Great!” He grabbed his radio, “Hey boys, contract’s void. We got a conflict of interest. Keep your posts but treat any trespassers as ghosts. A void contract ain’t worth dyin’ over, and dyin’ is what you’ll do.” He paused and seemed to remember something, “Oh and pay your respects to Marco. He didn’t get the memo.”

 Miles made double finger guns at Ryan as he backed away, “Go get 'em tiger.” He turned and left.

 Ryan didn’t waste time and ran straight towards the house while trying not to over think what he had just agreed to.

~*~

“Adam!” Joel hollered.

 Geoff looked around towards the direction of his yell. He didn’t want to know what state Lindsay and Gavin were in, but they were his responsibility and it was his duty to know. He could already feel the guilt building.

 There was a pause. No one responded or entered the room.

 Joel stood, empty beer bottle in hand, “ADAM!”

 Adam slowly shuffled into the room with a large black bladed survival knife to his throat and his arms pulled behind his back.

 Ryan was at the other end of the blade.

“Hey Joel.” Adam said meekly.

“Geoff.” Ryan motioned with his head towards the door. Adam was a large man that provided sufficient cover, but that didn’t matter if Geoff got shot.

“Ryan you fuck-” Geoff stood.

 Joel reached behind his back and pulled out a pistol. He pointed it at Geoff, “Don’t bring a knife to a gun fight!”

 Geoff jumped Joel as he fired. The two of them hit the floor and began fumbling for the weapon. It skittered away from them across the tiles.

 Ryan threw Adam down and brought out his own gun, but Adam would not be defeated so easily. He kicked Ryan’s legs out from under him and immediately jumped on his gun still in his hand.

 Joel got his arm around Geoff’s neck and began to squeeze. In response Geoff used one arm to grab Joel’s hair and the other his arm. He bit down on the arm around his neck and tore at his hair.

“DID YOU JUST FUCKING BITE ME?!” Joel screeched and released him.

 Geoff flipped over and kicked Joel away. He spotted the gun on the ground and made to get to his feet and go for it. There was a sudden hard impact to the side of his head and his vision went black as he felt himself fall forwards and hit the tiles. Something hard in his jacket dug painfully into his side. Head swimming Geoff reached up to feel his head. He pulled his hand away covered in blood.

 Joel stood over him with his now broken beer bottle. His lip was split open. He stepped over Geoff while wiping his mouth with the back of his hand.

 Ryan managed to roll Adam off of him while still retaining his gun. He hit him across the face with the butt of the pistol, breaking Adam’s nose. He got his feet under him and saw Geoff bleeding on the ground with Joel straightening up above him, gun in hand.

“HEYMAN!” Ryan bellowed for his attention and raised his own gun to fire as Adam’s hands came up for him armed with one of his own knives.

 Joel’s head whipped up towards Ryan, and he brought his gun around to fire at him.

 Geoff pulled out the object that had been jabbing him in the side and smiled in recognition of the small hot pink cylinder. He pulled off the safety.

 Two gunshots went off.

 Joel screamed in pain and dropped his gun. He backed away and tripped onto his couch. His hands were instinctively by his face but he didn’t dare touch.

 Ryan watched as his gun arm was lowered and his bullet hit the tiled floor. He felt Joel’s bullet punch him in the chest. He was armoured but it was a still a hard enough hit to make breathing painful.

Satisfied that Joel had not been shot, Adam let go of Ryan’s arm and swung around the knife he had taken off of him.

 Ryan turned his shoulder towards the unskilled swipe as it hit. The knife went down his shoulder and half way across his shoulder blade before being caught in his body armour. The pain was intense and seared across his back and down his gun arm, causing him to release the gun and effectively throw it across the room.

 Ryan yelped in pain before delivering a powerful backhand across Adam’s injured face.

 Adam yowled.

“MOTHER FUCKER!” Joel howled, “It burns so bad!” The pepper spray was dripping down his face.

 Geoff stood, the half empty canister still in his hand. He could feel his blood dripping down into his collar.

“Oh god, why?!” Joel was crying, “The second I can see again, you’re DEAD, Geoff! You fucking fuck!”

 Ryan and Adam were both wrestling on the floor. The tiles were getting slippery from both their blood.

 Geoff staggered over, his balance felt off and dizziness reigned.

 Ryan had managed to pin Adam down and was on top of him with the same knife that had been used to cut open his shoulder. He was poised to plunge it into Adam’s chest, but Adam was doing his best to hold him back.

 Geoff saw Ryan’s sneer and the determination in his eyes as the blade made its way ever closer. If he killed Joel’s right hand man it would mean all-out war.

“Ryan! Back off! Let him go.” Geoff ordered.

 Adam looked into Ryan’s eyes and saw the sudden flash of anger and disappointment.

“Please.” Adam huffed. The exertion and blood loss had them both on their last legs.

 Ryan gave a sigh that was almost a growl and let up. He stood with a slight sway and looked to Geoff.

 Geoff took the pepper spray and doused Adam in it.

 Adam writhed and screamed, “Oh My GOD! MY EYES! Goddammit, god DAMN!”

“Fucking hurts, doesn’t it?!” Joel shouted from his curled up position on the couch.

 Ryan reached up to adjust his earpiece only to realize it was missing. That explained the radio silence. He gave a quick look around as he grabbed his gun, but didn’t find it.

“Ryan let’s go!” Geoff urged.

“Chopper.” Ryan was short of breath. He pointed out into the backyard.

 They jogged out to the poolside, and made the best pace they were capable of.

 Ryan suddenly veered to the right losing his balance. He stuck out his arms to save himself as he tumbled into a poolside lounger and chair. His injured right arm folded under his weight and he went down with a loud clatter.

 Geoff swore and ran to his side to help him up. In the growing morning light Ryan’s blood was a black smear on the light coloured furniture. There was too much.

“Come on, buddy.” Geoff said calmly, but his own head was spinning. He pulled Ryan’s good arm over his shoulders and heaved him upright. The loud chopping noise of helicopter rotor blades above demanded his attention.

He saw Michael hanging out the side with a large assault rifle.

 Jack brought the helicopter down quickly in the nearest clear area.

 Geoff began to rush forward with Ryan.

 Ryan shrugged him off, “Geoff I’m fine.” He broke into a half sprint and forced Geoff to do the same.

Michael was screaming for them to hurry.

 Geoff jumped up and no sooner had he pulled Ryan in after him, Jack had them all in the air.

 Both were handed a headset so that they could understand each other over the sound of the chopper.

“Geoff, are you and Ryan alright?!” Lindsay immediately jumped on them. She gasped when she saw Geoff’s bloodied face.

 Geoff looked up at Lindsay’s beaten and bruised face, “Oh god, Lindsay- Where’s Gavin?”

 Gavin turned around in the co-pilot seat to give Geoff a thumbs-up. His left eye was bruised and swollen shut, and the bridge of his nose had been split open but was now a scab.

 Geoff stopped himself from jumping up and hugging him. He knew his apologies wouldn’t mean much so he just smiled.

“What’s our status, Jack?” Geoff asked, “Also where’s Ray?”

“Ray’s fine, but on his own. We’re fucked.” Michael wasn’t taking his eyes off the horizon and held his gun tightly.

 Jack elaborated, “There were FBI birds in the air. Two of 'em. They didn’t notice us at first, but we had to go in to extract Lindsay and Gavin after Ryan got them. They noticed us pretty quick after that.”

 "I got them to back off for now, but they will be back and packing heat any second. Personally I’d rather not go out in a blaze of glory just yet.“ Michael finished.

"What about Kdin’s misdirection?!” Ryan asked, sounding tired.

“Yeah, well they didn’t take the bait did they?” Michael growled.

 "I can keep us low, but won’t be able to land. At least not anywhere near anywhere. They’ll have every airfield watched. And landing in some parking lot will have everyone talking. Not to mention we’d be reported since most places are no-fly zones for as low as we need to be.“ Jack explained.

 Lindsay noticed Ryan’s half lidded unfocused stare and the cold perspiration forming on his face, "Ryan holy shit,” She moved to inspect him, “Holy fuck, he’s lost alotta blood guys. He was stabbed in the shoulder. Jack where’s the first aid?!”

“Check under the seats!” Jack didn’t take his eyes from the lightening landscape before him. He was flying dangerously low to stay off radar.

 Lindsay grabbed and tore the seam of her dress so she could crouch and search for the first aid more effectively. She found the large first aid chest and quickly flipped it open.

 Nausea was growing in the back of Geoff’s throat but he fought it down and helped Lindsay roll Ryan over to better access the wound.

 Ryan didn’t protest, and felt too tired to be anything but limp.

“We need to get him out of his gear.” Lindsay stated.

 Geoff was ahead of her and had pulled out a heavy pair of blunt tipped scissors from the kit, “I can cut off his sleeve, but the body armour we’re-” Geoff paused and wrestled his nausea, “-going to have to pull off of him.”

“You sure you’re alright?” Lindsay looked at him with genuine concern.

“Good enough. We can worry about me later. It’s probably just a concussion.” He waved her away.

 Ryan groaned as they began their work and had to jostle him around.

“Shut up you stupid bastard. I told you guys not to come. It’s your own damn fault.” Geoff scolded him, but truly was incredibly thankful. Joel could be talked into making a decision but once it was made it was set in stone. Geoff had been wrong in assuming he could talk his way out.

“I’ll hold him down, you clean and stitch.” Geoff ordered Lindsay.

“Geoff, I’ve never stitched anything before, never mind a person!” Lindsay was wide eyed.

 There was muffled mumbling from Ryan who was face down and his headset mic nowhere near his mouth. Geoff rolled him slightly and readjusted his mic.

 Ryan spoke again, “I can do stitches, just try and do what I say.”

“Yeah, and if you pass out?” Lindsay gave a worried laugh.

“Improvise and try not to leave me with a massive scar.” Ryan retorted.

“See? Easy.” Geoff told Lindsay with a smile.

~*~

 Ryan awoke groggy and in pain. The first thing he noticed aside from the pain was the quiet. He opened his eyes begrudgingly. They had laid him on the floor of the helicopter on his stomach, using his body armour as a makeshift pillow.

 It was bright out, and hot. He got his good arm underneath himself and went to push himself up.

“Whoa, whoa, whoa, Ryan stay down.” Michael’s voice came from behind him.

 Ryan turned his head to the opposite side to see Michael seated outside the chopper looking in.

“What’d I miss?” Ryan shielded his eyes from the bright sunlight.

“Ryan’s up.” Michael stated before turning back to him, “Jack’s got us landed in the middle of butt fuck nowhere. And we can’t go anywhere until nightfall.”

“It’s not butt fuck nowhere, Michael. I know exactly where we are.” Jack was sitting leaned up against the chopper, outside of Ryan’s line of sight.

“Yeah. In butt fuck nowhere.” Michael retorted.

 Ryan decided to sit himself up on the edge of the door, to see where they were. The effort left him light headed and leaning on the sliding door itself, but now he knew why Michael was upset.

 Jack had landed them in the middle of the desert. Whether they were still in Nevada or not, it was impossible to tell. They were in the shadow of a small rocky outcrop and had attached a camo patterned tarp to the open side of the helicopter. Two sticks propped it up on the loose end, creating a makeshift shelter.

 Even in their artificially created shade, the heat was incredible, and half the crew had reacted by promptly falling asleep.

 Jack sat on an ammo box with his back leaned up against the helicopter. Michael sat directly on the ground with Gavin curled up on a jacket next to him. Lindsay quietly snored, using Michael’s lap as a pillow with one of her legs on top of Gavin. Geoff was stretched out on his stomach, and although he had clearly started on top of his makeshift bed of gear and outerwear, he was now almost entirely on the dusty ground.

 Ryan looked down to see he was only wearing his tank cut undershirt and realized they had taken to opportunity to co-opt his over shirt and suit for their bedding.

“How’re you doing, Ryan?” Jack asked.

 Ryan let out a moan, “I could be better. Recovering from blood loss is never fun.”

“Yeah, Geoff’s dealing with the same, plus a concussion. We cleaned him up, but then he was out like a light.” Jack informed him.

“Well, not before puking his guts out the side of the chopper.” Michael added.

“Speaking of food and water…” Ryan turned to Jack.

“Water we’ll be fine with. As for food we’ve got three energy bars because I knew I’d be in the air for a while. Gavin might be fine with half a bar but the rest of us are going to feel hungry. We won’t starve, but it won’t be fun.” Jack answered.

“And we don’t have Ray. He’s done the whole survival thing before.” Michael observed.

 Ryan chuckled, “We’re spending a day in a desert, not weeks in a South American jungle. We’re not gonna die because we haven’t eaten in sixteen hours. So don’t worry about drawing straws for who we’d have to eat first.” He paused, “It would be Gavin.”

 Michael laughed loudly, jostling Lindsay awake who in turn kicked Gavin awake.

 Gavin open his uninjured eye, “Oi.”

“Oh Gavin, I’m so sorry!” Lindsay realized what she had done.

“Wasn’t sleepin’ well anyway…” Gavin grumbled and sat himself up with a yawn.

“Oh hey!” Lindsay noticed Ryan, “I hope Geoff and I did an acceptable job on your shoulder. Once we landed, Jack took over and finished it up.”

 "I don’t exactly have the best angle to look at it. Jack?“ Ryan looked to Jack to hear from him.

"It will scar, but I did my best with what I was left to deal with.” Jack shrugged.

“That’s encouraging… ” Ryan muttered, “We never seem to have Caleb around when we need him.”

“What’s another scar to ya?” Michael waved his hand dismissively.

“It means answering more questions. Wife, kids, friends.” Ryan shrugged.

“You have friends?” Gavin joked and got a disapproving glare from Ryan.

“Of course he does, idiot.” Michael responded and then smiled, “He can’t kill everyone that looks in his general direction.”

“Speaking of that,” Lindsay changed the subject, “Geoff said you were pretty intent on killing Adam. You didn’t though?”

“Geoff said not to. But you can rest assured he’s made himself a home on my personal hit list.” Ryan explained.

“And how long of a list is that?” Jacked smirked.

“Oh I keep it short.” Ryan smiled.

“See this is what I was talking about!” Gavin told Michael, “It’s impossible to tell when he’s joking or being serious. ‘Oi how many blokes ya killed?’ And he’s like, 'Enough to kill you with my eyes closed’ what does it even mean?”

 Ryan looked back to Jack, “See that’s why I’d eat him first. So we wouldn’t need to waste energy on his questions.”

“What?!” Gavin was baffled, and Michael’s laughter in response only confused him further.

“Don’t worry about it.” Jack dismissed.

“It definitely sounds worth worrying about when the psychopath is suggesting eating you.” Gavin argued.

“Naaahhhh. It’s nothing. Forget I said anything.” Ryan waved him away, knowing it would only further fluster him.

“No body’s eating anybody.” Geoff rolled over and cracked open his eyes, “But if we had to, I nominate Jack.” He rubbed his face to wake himself further.

“Thanks, Geoff.” Jack sighed and shook his head.

 Michael checked his phone out of habit and swore as he remembered the complete lack of signal out here. He was tempted to throw it out of frustration, but knew he’d only regret it later.

“How much longer until we can leave this Hell hole?” Michael moaned and thumped his head back against the side of the helicopter.

 Geoff looked to his watch, “Well, Jack wants complete darkness, but fuck if I’m sitting out here when all the scorpions, snakes, and god knows what come out.”

“Geoff-” Jack began to argue.

“No. Fuck you. It’s not happening.” Geoff explained with finality.

“What is the plan though?” Ryan asked.

 "We don’t have much fuel left, and the FBI will have done the math to figure out our max range. Any airfield or large enough park will have them waiting for us. Our best bet is to get to the nearest small town, ditch the chopper in a parking lot, and find a ride. Ray’s smart. He’ll have cleared the safehouse by now and left the state with the rest of B-team. We get ourselves back on the road, contact them, and figure out our next steps from there.“ Jack laid out his plan.

"Fun.” Lindsay stated.

 Ryan rubbed his chest where the bullet had hit his armour. He lifted his shirt to inspect the bruise. It wasn’t anywhere near as bad as it had felt.

“Didn’t realise you’d take a bullet for me.” Geoff chuckled.

Everyone looked at Ryan as he quickly dropped his shirt back down. He shrugged, seemingly lacking a witty response, but then said, “I’ll expect you to return the favour.”

 Geoff continued to chuckle, “Sure, buddy.”

 Ryan stood slowly, using the helicopter doorway for support, “I need to move around a bit. I’ll be back.”

“Dude, don’t pass out somewhere and end up vulture food.” Lindsay sat up as he passed by.

 "I promise I won’t.“ Ryan smiled and ducked out from under their tarp shelter.

 They watched as he left.

"He found an old friend of sorts last night. The guy called him BM Vagabond. Made him agree to a hit.” Jack quietly informed Geoff once Ryan was out of earshot.

“The hit he’ll have to do on his own time.” Geoff said and looked back to the group.

“That’s not the info I wanted you to get from that.” Jack pouted.

 "I hired him knowing who he was, Jack. I chose him for the job, remember?“ Geoff reminded him.

"Mind sharing with the rest of the class?” Gavin prodded.

 Jack and Geoff exchanged a look. Geoff broke it by shrugging.

 It was Jack who spoke, “His call name. Or, well, the most used one. I’m sure he has many.”

“The Mad King, being one I’ve heard.” Michael supplied.

“Yeah, but that one’s newer. Vagabond is probably his oldest.” Geoff explained.

“So?” Gavin asked.

 Lindsay sighed, “Look there’s a reason he doesn’t advertise it. Those were his earliest jobs. They were sloppier, messier, and just a bad time for everyone involved.” She looked to Michael, “You don’t like talking about your records with Interpol and being on the FAA’s shit list. It’s the same. We’ve all got shit.”

“The FAA thing’s stupid. It wasn’t even what you think. I was clean.” Michael’s protest was aimed at the group as Lindsay was already privy to the story, “I was coming out of Jersey, to visit Gav in London. Commercial, personal flight. No job.” He wanted to be clear, “Made the mistake of helpin’ Mom in the garden. Mixing the plant food an’ shit. Airport security tackled me not five steps before my gate. Spent a full twenty four hours in detainment before they put me on their list and kicked me out the door.” He shrugged.

“Well I mean, it could have been worse.” Gavin commented, “I’ve had the dogs come for me before.”

“At least you’re not Ray. Regular dogs and him are fine. Any kind of security dog and I think they smell the fear.” Lindsay mused.

“Fear? I’ll tell you what’s fear.” Gavin began, “Getting stopped by a Russian security stop and searched with thirty-six million worth of stolen art hidden in your lorry. That’s fear.”

“Having power steering fail mid-getaway would be up there for me.” Jack rubbed the back of his neck, and avoided looking to Geoff.

 Geoff stayed quiet.

  _He was thrown to his knees on the hard concrete. His hands were bound so tightly he bled. On his head a foul smelling burlap sack kept him blind. Harsh yells in a language he couldn’t understand were barked at him as he was beaten with what he could only guess was a rifle._

Geoff leaned back and let the memory pass. He opened his eyes to see everyone looking at him, “What?”

 They looked away. Gavin appeared particularly guilty for having said anything.

 There was an uncomfortable silence where they shifted in their seats.

“Look, I know I have shit. Everyone has shit. Don’t worry about me; I’m perfectly capable of dealing with my own shit.” Geoff finally announced with an angry edge to his voice.

“We know you are.” Jack gently spoke.

  Gavin felt a slight tickle on his hand that lay on the ground between him. Assuming it was a leaf or dirt he shook his hand to clear it. He placed his hand back down and it touched something soft.

 He gave a quick glance down and screeched while violently flailing to get the large arachnid away from him.

 He managed to toss it up onto Michael. Michael yelled Gavin’s named and jumped to his feet as well. Frantically he hit the spider off of his chest.

 The spider tumbled to the ground where Lindsay quickly and gently picked it up before tossing it away.

“WHAT FUCK, GAVIN?!” Michael bellowed, “Don’t just throw a tarantula at someone!”

“Wolf spider.” Lindsay corrected.

“DO I LOOK LIKE I FUCKING CARE?” Michael threw up his hands.

 Gavin was making several distressed noises and shook his hands vigorously.

 The tarp was nearly pulled down as Ryan rushed in worried about their well-being, “What happened?!”

 Geoff started howling with laughter and Jack joined in.

“Gavin was spooked by a spider, which he then threw at Michael.” Lindsay recounted.

“Bloody massive prehistoric beast!” Gavin claimed.

 "Wolf spider.“ Lindsay corrected one again.

"Jesus Christ, I thought something had actually happened!” Ryan wiped some sweat from the side of his face.

 A shadow passed by over their tarp, stifling their laughter. They looked up to see if it came again.

 "I picked up a friend during my walk. Don’t worry about it.“ Ryan dismissed their curiosity with a wave.

 "A friend?” Michael asked.

“Vulture. Apparently I’m giving off some serious wounded animal vibes.” Ryan walked over and seated himself on the edge of the helicopter once again.

“I’m sure we all are.” Lindsay pointed out.

 Ryan chuckled and turned to Jack, “So about that water?”


End file.
